Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

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Linda
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by Linda »

I felt like getting rid of the OEM steering wheel helped handling alot. It felt like I was driving a school bus with that thing.
A smaller, balanced stylish wheel really adds to the driving experience, in my opinion.

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AidanDawn2000
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by AidanDawn2000 »

haha I know what you mean!
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by JT68 »

Lots of good advice here on fixing worn out suspension parts. There is no reason to waste your money on nice springs, shocks and sway bars if all the basic functional components are worn out and cannot be properly aligned.

I realize Aidan isn't in the market for Bilsteins, but KYBs are really very cheap replacement shocks. The fronts are valved for a 1980 Plymouth Volare, so that should calibrate the expectation. I just threw out a pair that were only a couple years old - one had completely lost its gas charge :-(.

Even Monroe and certainly Gabriels are a better option (having used all of them). I would definitely not call the KYB's an upgrade if you are looking for handling. To bouncy and valved incorrectly - two thumbs down for handling. Fine for puttering about.
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by AC77 »

Linda wrote:I felt like getting rid of the OEM steering wheel helped handling alot. It felt like I was driving a school bus with that thing.
A smaller, balanced stylish wheel really adds to the driving experience, in my opinion.

Linda
What steering wheel did you switch to?
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Linda
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by Linda »

I switched to a wood Momo Gritti wheel, 360 mm I believe, used on older Ferraris....I love it but the wood had cracks I had to work on.
There are many nice wheels that help handling and are cosmetically very nice. The Momo Prototipio is a modern nice wheel.
I think there is a steering wheel thread to get some ideas

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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by Mainer311 »

JT68 wrote:Even Monroe and certainly Gabriels are a better option (having used all of them). I would definitely not call the KYB's an upgrade if you are looking for handling. To bouncy and valved incorrectly - two thumbs down for handling. Fine for puttering about.
The Gabriel and Monroe application guides both list the exact same cars for their shocks as KYB, so I'm having a hard time seeing how any of them would have an edge on the other. Sucks that, if their valving is all the same, we end up with a handful of lousy affordable shocks. How can they blanket a large application of models with the same valving across the board?
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by JT68 »

That is right. There isn't much of an edge with the other brands mentioned from a performance perspective, they are all just "ok".

All will function as a basic shock and be a huge improvement over a completely dead shock, so all would serve your Volare or Maverick or Datsun equally well from that perspective. There is a wide range of valving that will function on a very basic level, but would not be an "upgrade" over stock.

I'm sure you would do just fine with KYB, Gabriel or Monroe if looking for budget shocks.

Of course since KYB/Monroe/Gabriel are building a shock that retails for $20, they have to build them for about $3-$5 in the orient to stay in business...so that should set the expectations.

Not really very different from tires, you can spend $35 or $350+ each depending on your objectives.
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by AidanDawn2000 »

This broken U-bolt probably doesn't help the handling feel :shock:
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by notoptoy »

:shock: yikes!
"When all else fails, force prevails!" Ummm, we're gonna need a bigger hammer here.

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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by JT68 »

Prob didn't change the handling significantly, but man you dodged a bullet if the second had broken at high speed....
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by Howard R »

I have a Grant banjo style wheel. Feels great.


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Linda
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by Linda »

Good to check ujoints and rear wheel bearings too.
Point made about checking safety parts first, then go for the bling mods...
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by SLOroadster »

When upgrading the steering wheel, it makes sense to get a good one. Yes, I ran a cheap Grant wheel for a few years, until one day while doing an autoX run I bent it trying to catch the car. (There was a dip as you entered a chicane, and I had a bit too much speed going in.) I bent the wheel like it was made of cardboard. Even more scary was the fact that I was able to bend it back to sort of correct during the run. After that experience I went out and bought a Momo and haven't had an issue since. Yes, the Momo was expensive, but well worth the expense. Folding that thing was scary, unfolding it was equally scary as was every drive following that because it would bend one way or another.

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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by oppositeLock »

1. Fix egregious maintenance stuff as noted above (worn tie rods, for instance. Or brakes...definitely brakes).

Preferably done at the same time:
2a. Buy really good tires
2b. Better shocks. Potentially optional, though I seem to recall you said on our group drive a while back that you have really crappy shocks. So anything will likely be an improvement...plenty of other advice on that here.
2c. Get a good alignment.

3. Drive the car repeatedly down a road you know well and carefully/incrementally push it a little harder to feel improvements. Also, don't be a dumbass and way overdrive the car. Gradually faster. :D

4. Autocross. Just a couple events will make a huge difference...you'll learn stuff about how it handles with plenty of room for error. Ask good drivers to watch you and offer advice.

Now you have a baseline.

5. Make changes based on what you're feeling...fix problems, don't just make a checklist of changes. Most importantly IMO is getting the F/R balance the way you like it. Start with understeer and oversteer. If the car is understeering (a lot, or more than makes you comfortable), you definitely do not want a thicker front bar. Going to a thicker front bar will add understeer / remove oversteer. If the car is tending to oversteer, then go to the thicker front bar. A little bit of understeer is good for steering feedback...a lot of it is pretty sketchy to me.

Now make additional changes as needed (e.g., stiffer springs to make it drive flatter)

On the alignment, the likelihood is you'll need to find a shop other than the standard goodyear or whatever since they don't deal well with older cars (ie, alignment using shims as needed). I'm going try out Pro Alignment and Brake in Campbell...a lot of pics of 60's cars and good reviews on yelp. (I should report back on that, actually)
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Re: Best Budget Handling Upgrades?

Post by AidanDawn2000 »

Changed all the u-bolts (they were braking at an alarming rate). Also took the opportunity to put in some of the used Konis I got recently.
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Last edited by AidanDawn2000 on Sat Sep 23, 2017 5:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Oil a little low? Time to get a longer dipstick:)
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1968 2000 SRL311-05110 (first car! Rust Bucket. Sold :( )
1969 2000 SRL311-10440 (matching numbers, Solex!)
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